Food processing company pleads guilty to charge in death of Edmonton man

Madeline Smith · CBC

· Posted: Jun 18, 2025 2:27 PM EDT | Last Updated: 34 minutes ago

A commercialized nutrient processing institution has pleaded blameworthy to a workplace information complaint aft an Edmonton idiosyncratic became trapped successful a smokehouse and died.

The Crown and defence are jointly recommending that Ontario-based Sofina Foods Inc. beryllium ordered to wage a $330,000 punishment aft admitting to failing to guarantee the information of employee Samir Subedi.

The 32-year-old died connected March 2, 2023, aft a coworker recovered him unconscious successful a smokehouse astatine a Sofina Foods installation successful southbound Edmonton. Subedi was a superintendent astatine the plant, and he'd gone wrong the smokehouse to show the drying process of the nutrient products inside.

As portion of a projected originative sentencing bid elaborate successful tribunal Wednesday, the wealth volition spell toward backing a nutrient information grooming task astatine the Alberta Food Processors Association.

The Crown intends to retreat the 25 different charges the institution was facing successful the case. A justice will rule connected a condemnation Thursday.

Sofina has besides already paid Subedi's household $500,000, not accounting for taxation reductions, so that his woman and 2 young children tin screen the outgo of the owe connected their home.

Subedi, who had a master's grade and had been moving astatine Sofina for astir a twelvemonth astatine the clip of his death, was the superior breadwinner for the family.

Several Sofina executives were successful the Edmonton Court of Justice connected Wednesday to perceive the details of the plea.

The tribunal besides heard from Subedi's wife, Bhumika Bhattaria.

"The oddest happening successful beingness is surviving without idiosyncratic you are readying to walk your full beingness with. My children support asking me, 'Where is daddy?' And I can't explain," she said successful a unfortunate interaction connection work by the Crown.

"Daddy went to enactment ... in a developed state and didn't travel back."

Broken exigency handle

According to an agreed connection of facts work successful court, Subedi died from complications of thermal burns helium sustained wrong the smokehouse, wherever the somesthesia roseate arsenic precocious arsenic 92 C.

The smokehouse's exigency grip to unfastened the doorway from the wrong was broken, and successful its spot was a doorway stopper that hadn't been approved by Sofina's engineering team.

The doorway stopper couldn't beryllium activated erstwhile idiosyncratic was wrong the smokehouse — workers had to prosecute it successful advance. The tribunal heard that determination isn't immoderate grounds Subedi had been trained connected either the exigency grip oregon the caller "makeshift" doorway stopper.

"The Crown submits that the level of negligence present was astatine the precocious end. The Crown would not hesitate successful describing that arsenic a gross level of negligence," authoritative Hendrik Kruger said.

Defence lawyer Loretta Bouwmeester said Sofina accepts that workplace hazards astir the smokehouse weren't adequately controlled.

"These types of offences are — certainly, it goes without saying — tragically impactful to the household and their communities, each the workers successful an organization. They bash profoundly impact everyone who has immoderate engagement successful the incident."

She said the institution afloat co-operated with the Occupational Health and Safety investigation, and since Subedi's death, Sofina has accrued staffing successful their engineering and wellness and information departments.